Metal fixture for typewriter desks



June 10, 1941. M. Fox 2,245,526

METAL FIXTURE FOR TYPEWRiTER DESKS' Filed March a, 1940 s Sheets-Sheet 1 June 10, 1941. M, Fox 2,245,526

METAL FIXTURE FOR TYPEWRITER DESKS Filed March 6, 1940 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 June 10, 1941. M. FOX

METAL FIXTURE FOR TYPEWRITER nssxs Filed March 6. 1940 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented June 10, 1941 METAL. FIXTURE FOR- TYPEWRITER DESKS Martin Fox, Chicago, 111., assignor to The Seng Company, Chicago, Ill.

Application March 6, 1940, Serial No. 322,612

9 Claims.

My invention relates to pedestal ofiice desks of that type in which one of the pedestals is provided with a compartment; for housing a typewriter and having means for supporting the typewriter in such manner that it may be moved into and out of the compartment as well as raised to a position for use at one side of the desk, having particular reference to that special type in which the supporting platform maintains a horizontal position during the shifting of the same in housing the typewriter and bringing it to operative position.

This invention is an improvement on what is disclosed in my prior Patent No. 1,904,217, dated April 18, 1933.

In providing shiftable supporting means of this general character it is important that when the typewriter is in operative position it should be firmly supported in connection with the desk or pedestal so as to prevent vibration while the typewriter is being operated, and it is therefore the main purpose of my present invention to accomplish this end in an effective manner by the provision of means intimately engaging the platform to securely hold the same in cooperation with the supporting levers and slides by which the platform and typewriter are shifted into and out of the compartment of the desk.

With. this principal object in view the present inveintion provides for rigidly supporting the platform in elevated position by interlocking means on the Walls of the compartment and in ner end of the typewriter supporting platform, respectively, adapted to engage automatically when the platform is swung to elevated position outside of the compartment, in association with a cross rail at the rear end of the platform engaging the crosspiece at the upper end of the doorway to the compartment-all as hereinafter fully described and more specifically set forth in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical sectional View through the typewriter compartment to show the typewriter platform and supporting means therefor, the platform being in housed position.

Fig. '2 is a side View with the inner side wall of the compartment partly broken away, showing the arrangement of the mechanism in the extended lowermost position of the platform.

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view in which the platform is in raised position in interlocking engagement with the anti-vibration holding means.

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view on the line 44 of Fi 3.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of one of the metal fixtures constituting the interlocking means, and

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of. the companion fixture.

By reference to the drawings it will be noted that my improvements are applied to thatform of typewriter supporting means in which the platform H] is pivotally connected at each side of its inner end to spaced apart link-connected bell crank levers H, H mounted on a carriage laslidably supported by rail IS, with a pawl 14 pivoted to the carriage to engage a pin ii at one side of the forward bell crank lever for locking the platform in lowered position during the horizontal movement of the same into and out of the compartment, in association with springs IE to assist in lifting the typewriter and supporting platform to raised position beyond the compartment when the bell crank levers are released by disengagement of the pawls. It will be understood that this mechanism and the interlocking means hereinafter described for holding the platform in rigid raised position are duplicated at opposite sides of the compartment, as illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3 of the drawings.

In carrying out my invention the rail !3, secured at its rear end to a bracket it, is supported at its forward end by a metal fixture ii in the form of a plate attached to a side wall of the compartment and having a lateral flange l8 by which it is also attached to the contiguous corner post I9, the lower end portion of the flange being immediately above the outer end of the rail to serve as an abutment or stop against which the projection 20 (indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 3) strikes for limiting the outward movement of the carriagethe inward movement for housed position of the platform being limited by a similar projection 2| at the other end of the carriage. In addition to supporting the rail and providing the abutment to stop the forward movement of the carriage this plate is provided with means coacting with a fixture on the rear end. of the platform for firmly holding the platform in raised position, and for this purpose spaced apart pins 22, 22 project from the upper portion thereof to. engage correspondingly spaced hooks 23, 23 formed integrally with and extending upwardly from a plate 24 attached to the side of the platform, with a lateral flange 25 on said plate overlapping the platform to reinforce the connection of the plate to the platform. It will be understood, of course, that when the plate is secured in place the pins will be in the path of the hooks when the platform is swung to raised position, whereby rearward movement of the platform will cause the engagement of the hooks with the pins-the pin receiving recesses in the hooks being slightly tapered for intimate engagementand by supporting the platform in this manner there is a two-point bearing at each side of said platform. To automatically bring the hooks in engagement with the pins when the platform supported by the bell-crank levers is swung from lower to raised position outside of the compartment at strong helical spring 26 is connected to the rear end of the platform and to the cross rod 21 extending between the rear bell-crank levers at opposite sides of the compartment so as to exert a rearward pull on the platform for interlocking engagement of the holding means as well as for maintaining such engagement.

The metal fixture or plate I1 is preferably of the shape shown in Fig. 5, with an outwardly projecting portion 28-having the spaced apart pins 22, 22-directly below an attaching flange 29, and the body portion 30 bent rearwardly and downwardly and then forwardly to properly 1ocate the slide rail attached to the lower end thereof so that the link-operated levers pivotally connected to the carriage and platform will swing the latter into line with the pins. For guiding the hooks at opposite sides of the platform into engagement with the companion pins on the stationary fixtures that portion of each fixture from which the pins project is provided with a lip 3| projecting forwardly therefrom and slightly curved backwardly (see Fig, 4), and in attaching the fixtures to the opposite side walls of the compartment in which the typewriter is housed filling blocks Ila are used.

The metal fixture or plate 24 having the hooks 23, 23 also provides bearings for pivotally connecting the supporting bell-crank levers thereto, for which purpose the plate is extended forwardly and pierced at 32 to receive the pivot pin for the forward lever and pierced at 33 to receive the pivot pin for the rear lever-the holes 34, 34 receiving the attaching screws, and the attachment of this fixture to the platform is reinforced by the aforementioned lateral flange 25.

It will be obvious that when the platform is in raised position with the hooks in engagement with the pins on the fixtures attached to the 0pposite sides of the compartment said platform (on which the typewriter is mounted in the usual manner) will be firmly supported, obviating vibration during the operation of the typewriter keys, and to augment this manner of rigidly supporting the platform I provide the latter with a cross rail 35 near the rear end thereof adapted to engage the crosspiece or lintel 3S usually provided at the upper end of the doorway to the compartment, said cross rail being preferably secured to the platform by brackets 31 and 38, with the intermediate bracket 38 provided with an eye 39 to which the pull spring 26 is attached.

In the operation of the mechanism supporting the platform and typewriter, from housed to operative position of the typewriter. the platform is drawn forward to the position shown in Fig. 2, during which movement the spring-actuated catch or pawl M is in locked engagement with the bell crank levers and lower edge of rail l3, and when the bell crank levers are released (Fig. 2) by the upwardly projecting end W of the pawl entering the notch la the platform is swung upwardly to raised position and will be drawn rearwardly by spring 26 to effect engagement of the hooks with the pins and the cross rail with the lintel of the doorway. During this operation the counterbalancing springs I5, l5 act to assist in raising the platform and typewriter. Thus the typewriter will be firmly supported in operative position to overcome vibration during the operation of the typewriter keys. In housing the typewriter the platform is drawn forwardly to disengage the hooks from the pins, and when swung downwardly the projecting pins on the bell crank levers engage the pawls to release them from the notches in the slide rails so that the platform and typewriter may slide horizontally into the compartment-the rearward movement being stopped by the projection 2| engaging the bracket l6.

The metal fixtures comprising the companion plates for attachment to the inner walls of the compartment and to the opposite sides of the platform are made up in pairs, or rights and lefts, an obvious requirement necessitated by the projecting flanges on the plates.

From the foregoing description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, it will be readily seen that I provide an effective means for rigidly supporting the movable platform of a typewriter desk of this general type, and having shown and described the preferred embodiment of my invention I desire it to be understood that obvious modifications or changes may be resorted to within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. The combination with an ofiice desk having a compartment for housing a typewriter and platform, slide rails at opposite sides of the compartment, carriages slidable on said rails, and bell crank levers pivoted to the carriages and to the typewriter platform at opposite sides of the latter for movement of the platform from lower to raised positions outside of the compartment, of fixtures at the opposite sides of the typewriter platform and compartment, respectively, for rigidly supporting the platform in raised position, said fixtures having spaced apart interlocking means to provide two-point bearings for the platform at each side thereof, and a spring having means whereby it is connected to the rear end of the platform and to the bell crank levers for moving the platform rearwardly to bring the interlocking means into intimate engagement in the raised position of said platform.

2. The combination with an office desk having a compartment for housing a typewriter and :platform, slide rails at opposite sides of the compartment, carriages slidable on the rails, and bell crank levers pivoted to the carriages and to the typewriter platform at opposite sides thereof for shifting the latter from lower to raised positions outside of the compartment, of fixtures for rigidly holding the typewriter platform in raised position including spaced apart pins within the compartment at each side thereof, and spaced apart horizontally disposed hooks at each side of the rear end of the platform adapted to engage the pins in the raised position of the platform.

3. The combination with an office desk having a compartment for housing a typewriter and platform, slide rails at opposite sides of the compartment, carriages slidable on the rails, and bell crank levers pivoted to the carriages and to the typewriter platform at opposite sides thereof for shifting the latter from lower to raised positions outside of the compartment, of fixtures for rigidly holding the typewriter platform in raised position including spaced apart pins within the compartment at each side thereof, spaced apart hooks at each side of the rear end of the platform adapted to engage the pins in the raised position of the platform, and a spring having means whereby it is connected to the rear end of the platform and to the bell crank levers for moving the platform rearwardly into intimate engagement with the pins in the raised position of said platform.

4. The combination with an ofiice desk having a compartment for housing a typewriter and platform, horizontal rails at opposite sides of the compartment, carriages slidable on said rails, and bell crank levers pivoted to the carriages and to the typewriter platform at opposite sides of the latter for movement of the platform from lower to raised positions outside of the compartment, of fixtures at the opposite sides of the typewriter platform and compartment, respectively, for rigidly supporting the platform in raised position,

said fixtures having spaced apart interlocking means to provide two-point bearings for the platform at each side thereof, and a cross rail on the platform adapted to engage a crosspiece at the upper end of the doorway to the compart- 11161113.

5. The combination with an office desk having a compartment for housing a typewriter and platform, horizontal rails at opposite sides of the compartment, carriages slidable on said rails, and bell crank levers pivoted to the carriages and to the typewriter platform at opposite sides of the latter for movement of the platform from lower to raised positions outside of the compartment,

of fixtures at the opposite sides of the typewriter.

platform and compartment, respectively, for rigidly supporting the platform in raised position, said fixtures having spaced apart interlocking means to provide two-point bearings for the platform at opposite sides thereof, a cross rail on the platform adapted to engage a crosspiece at the upper end of the doorway to the compartment, and means comprising a spring to assist rearward movement of the platform in raised position.

6. The combination with an office desk having a compartment for housing a typewriter and platform, horizontal rails at opposite sides of the compartment, carriages slidable on said rails, and hell crank levers pivoted to the carriages and to the typewriter platform at opposite sides of the latter for movement of the platform from lower to raised positions outside of the compartment,

.of fixtures at the contiguous sides of the typewriter platform and compartment, respectively, for rigidly supporting the platform in raised position, said fixtures having complementary spaced apart hooks and pins for interlocking engagement with each other, means comprising a spring to assist rearward movement of the platform in raised position, and a cross rail on the platform adapted to engage a cross piece at the upper end of the doorway to the compartment.

7. The combination with an office desk having a compartment for housing a typewriter and platform, horizontal rails at opposite sides of the compartment, carriages slidable on said rails, and bell crank levers pivoted to the carriages and to the typewriter platform at opposite sides of the latter for movement of the platform from lower to raised positions outside of the compartment, of fixtures at opposite sides of the typewriter platform and compartment, respectively, for rigidly supporting the platform in raised posiion, the fixture attached to the side Wall of the compartment having spaced apart pins and a depending portion to which the forward end of the horizontal rail is attached, and the fixture attached to the platform having correspondingly spaced apart hooks for interlocking engagement with the aforementioned pins, in association with means comprising a spring to assist rearward movement of the platform in raised position.

8. Metal fixtures for typewriter desks in which the platform carrying the typewriter is movable into and out of a compartment in the desk and is adapted to be swung from lower to raised positions outside of the compartment, said fixtures each comprising plates for attachment to an inner wall of the compartment and adjacent Side of the platform for rigidly holding the platform in raised position, one of the plates having spaced apart pins in substantially horizontal alignment and the other plate having correspondingly spaced horizontally dis-posed hooks for interlocking engagement with the pins.

9. Metal fixtures for typewriter desks in which the platform carrying the typewriter is movable into and out of a compartment in the desk and is adapted to be swung from lower to raised position outside of the compartment, said fixtures comprising plates for attachment to an inner Wall of the compartment and side of the platform for rigidly holding the platform in raised position,

one of the plates having spaced apart pins and a depending portion with an outwardly projecting flange to form an abutment or stop and the other plate having correspondingly spaced apart hooks for interlocking engagement with the pins.

MARTIN FOX. 

